The Tale of the Rose, a memoir written by Consuelo de Saint Exupéry, remained concealed in an attic trunk for decades until its discovery by her heirs years after her passing. This document offered a personal perspective on her turbulent marriage to the writer and aviator Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, finally surfacing long after her life in France and abroad.
Early Life and Education
Born Consuelo Suncín de Sandoval in 1901, she grew up in Armenia, El Salvador, within a family of wealthy landowners and coffee growers. Due to struggles with asthma, her father sent her to study in the United States, specifically in San Francisco. She continued her education in Mexico City and later in France, eventually establishing herself as a multi-disciplinary artist who worked in writing, journalism, sculpture, and painting.
Twenty questions, eight minutes on the clock, and a percentile measured against everyone who has taken it. No sign-up.
Take the IQ test →Personal Relationships and Marriages
Her first marriage was to a Mexican army captain named Ricardo Cárdenas, whom she met in the United States. She later married the Guatemalan writer and diplomat Enrique Gómez Carrillo. Following his death in 1927, she moved to Buenos Aires. In 1931, she married the French aristocrat Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. Their union was marked by frequent travel and his acknowledged extramarital affairs, including his relationship with Hélène de Vogüé.
Artistic Legacy and The Little Prince
Consuelo is identified as the likely inspiration for the Rose in her husband's work, The Little Prince. The character reflects her vanity and fragility, mirroring her actual health struggles with asthma. Furthermore, the three volcanoes found on the Prince's planet appear to be inspired by the landscape surrounding her hometown of Armenia, located near the Cordillera de Apaneca volcanic range, including the Santa Ana and Izalco volcanoes.
Later Years and Memoir Publication
Following the disappearance of her husband in July 1944, she drafted a memoir of their life together. In 1967, she served as a guest of honor at Expo 67 in Montreal, where the theme centered on her husband’s 1939 work, Wind, Sand and Stars. She died in Grasse on May 28, 1979, and was interred at the Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris in the grave of Enrique Gómez Carrillo. Her memoir was eventually edited by Alain Vircondelet and published in 2000.
Fast facts
- Born: 1901, Armenia, El Salvador
- Died: 28 May 1979, Grasse
- Buried: Père Lachaise Cemetery, Paris
- Occupations: Writer, painter, sculptor, journalist
- First Husband: Ricardo Cárdenas
- Second Husband: Enrique Gómez Carrillo
- Third Husband: Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
- Memoir Title: The Tale of the Rose
Questions readers ask
Was Consuelo de Saint Exupéry the inspiration for The Rose?
Yes, her personality and health struggles are considered the primary inspiration for the character of the Rose in Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's book, The Little Prince.
When was her memoir published?
Her memoir, The Tale of the Rose, was published in France in 2000, two decades after her death.
